My hubby brought home some generic stuff and I washed my sons sheets. He woke up from his nap with huge hives all over his legs and stomach. Weird. Maybe it was a fragrance thing as the detergent was scented. I don't know. I switched to cheer free and now he has been fine. We've used all different brands of detergent before and never had that problem.

I don't typically notice a difference in how clean the clothes are from brand to brand.

For anything generic, the ACTIVE INGREDIENTS must be the same as the name brand. But the inactive ingredients are not.

Inactive ingredients may be the color, fragrance (hypo-allergenic particles vs cheapo), texture, residual components that is left over from the processing (e.g. higher quality processing techniques vs a general drying step).

So yeah, there is a reason for being more expensive, besides the research and advertising.

It might all be the same, but i personally notice a difference between using the generic stuff to detergents like Gain or Tide, specially when it comes to delicates which most of the work out stuff is.

What i do is just stuck up when i find it on sale. That way i never pay retail price and in most cases it comes out being the same price as the generic stuff or just slightly more.

My sister makes her own - says it is unbelievable cheap and effective. Quick Google search will tell you how.

^^^ this.

I've collected all the necessary ingredients and plan to make my first batch when our current stuff runs out. I normally buy 'eco friendly' name brand stuff because I'm particuar about what goes into our septic system and eventually, leaching field. Making our own will save us some serious cash!

This is what I love my Trader Joe's for. I don't buy their produce or packaged foods very often, but I rely on their laundry detergent, toilet paper, dish detergent, shampoo, soap, and toothpaste. The prices can't be beat, and the quality is always excellent.